ok, so we're pretty much used to Tour de France stages in Belgium, which is pointless IMO, but those stages are ususally flat and boring, plus it's not that far away from French border. no harm done. i know there had been ideas to start Tour in NYC, but those were probably Lance-inspired and pretty stupid to be honest too. unfortunatelly, some guys are really bored and come up with those new-old ideas to run a national tour in foreign countries...

Actually, the Galibier stage looks like a good one, starts in Italy, and it is short (150km), but packed with hard climbs. What's not to like?Also, there'll be snow, which always makes racing spectacular.

Four kilometres from the summit the stage will pass a monument to Marco Pantani, the 1998 Tour de France winner. The monument marks the place where Pantani attacked to seal his overall victory that year in the French Grand Tour.

The monument(s) should be where Pantani took the massive doses of EPO which sealed his victory, or maybe the Amgen factory where it was manufactured.

Actually, the Galibier stage looks like a good one, starts in Italy, and it is short (150km), but packed with hard climbs. What's not to like?Also, there'll be snow, which always makes racing spectacular.

Snow! Finally, a reason to use disk brakes and cross tires in a Grand Tour. Lol.

The Hamilton/Coyle book hopefully put the final nail in the coffin of the "level playing field" argument. The reality is in a doping era you can't say who would have been the strongest without supplementation. That said, you have to love Pantani's style.

Giro's always trying to increase interest. Doing the Galabier probably increases international interest. The Giro's my favorite of the three grand tours: the best combination of route elements, including the epic stages which the Vuelta doesn't have.

BTW, I saw Menchov's Giro trophy @ Interbike last week: I couldn't even lift it! It's made of lead, I was told.

Who is online

You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot post attachments in this forum